Q+A: Morgan Spurlock Explains How He Got "Mansome"

If you're seeking a realistic look into the world of men's grooming — especially as the category continues to burst all business expectations — you might think that new documentary, Mansome, is a good starting point. Ever since it premiered at the TriBeCa Film Festival last month, it looked like the movie would be an examination into how guys have become obsessed with face cream, back waxes, pedicures, and hand lotion. Turns out that it's a far less serious take on the industry, choosing to focus instead at men with habits you'd never want to steal for yourself. At the center of this all is Morgan Spurlock, the director of Supersize Me, who spoke with The Style Blog and explained why he thinks men still don't want to take the subject of grooming seriously.

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ESQUIRE.COM: One of the best moments in Mansome is you shaving off your "porn-star" mustache. Is it still gone?

MORGAN SPURLOCK: It was back. But I had to do a photo-shoot where I shaved it off again, so it started to come back again last week, sort of as a light, see-through beard.

ESQ: In the movie, you make a point of using a brush and a bowl, and all that retro process. Is that how you actually shave?

MS: No. Well, I just use a regular razor. But I was given one of those brushes, and once you start using one of those brushes and the cream, you are using infinitely less cream. It's a very thin layer, and it preps your face more, so I've actually warmed up to the brush. Which I used to think was just ridiculous.

ESQ: Speaking of ridiculous, this documentary is far from a serious examination into men's grooming. Why did you go for humor over something more sociological?

MS: Well, we had to make it accessible and humorous to reach an audience, and that's really what Jason Bateman and Will Arnett [who both produced the film] wanted to do. We're not looking for the cure for cancer, you know? From the get-go, this was going to be a funny movie, but also hopefully an anthropological look.

ESQ: There's not much anthropology, though.

MS: There is through the historical study of manhood — all those scientists and professors talking about how people used to live in olden times, and how we've changed over the decades. And, really, how that's impacted the male psyche.

ESQ: There's that wrestler who shaves every morning, or Jack Passion, who competes in beard competitions, or even that metrosexual guy with the really groomed eyebrows... Was there ever a concern that none of those interviewed represent, you know, real habits?

MS: I think my story represents the regular people. From the time I shower to the time I leave my house, it's 20 minutes. Except for that I have this atypical mustache which I sometimes shave around.

ESQ: But you'd agree that much of this movie, which focus on how men groom today, is actually about men with really extreme habits?

MS: Part of living is understanding where the fringes are. Once you know how far people go, you can say, "Well, here's how I choose to represent myself." I think once you get into someone's regular schedule — a guy showing your his shaving cream — it gets incredibly boring. Normal feels almost inaccessible.

ESQ: Normal's inaccessible?

MS: You see something that feels very plain.

ESQ: Do you think that men's grooming is a topic that you'll stick with going forward?

MS: No. This was one of those projects where it was a great change to do something fun and look at the subject in an engaging way. My next film is not going to be about pedicures.

ESQ: That's fair. What were you most surprised to learn about this whole new world then?

MS: One of my favorite scenes was at the barbershop, where the mom will bring in her sons just so the kids can get some interaction with other men, because they don't have fathers or uncles at home. This is a place for them to hang out with other men in the world.

ESQ: Nice moment, but not very funny. What stuck out to me was that guy who created that product, Fresh Balls. [Ed. note: This is exactly what it sounds like.]

MS: Yeah! I said to my producers, there's gotta be some ridiculous products out there. And one came back to me with a whole, "Look what I found!" I thought, there's no way this is real, this is gold, we have to go out there right away. So she went to check it out and that whole scene happened in one day.

ESQ: Do you know where he found those guys involved in the, uh, market research?

MS: Craigslist, I think? I dunno. They were just guys in need of fresh balls.